UNDERTRAY PLATE

[ilmung]

When I bought my MKII ,there were undertrays separately with the car .
I just wonder , do they have a significant effect on the handling of the car ??

[Stuart]

Those undertrays are for a mk3, the mk2 never had them, apart from a home made rear undertray made by Mike Perkins about 30 years ago.

They're supposed to give a bit of downforce, I can't honesty say I could detect any difference, but I never raced my car on a track to do any serious testing.

[kelvink]

I can also confirm the undertrays pictured are Mk3 trays. I do have a Mk2 rear tray It's quite different as it is moulded to follow the Mini exhaust as opposed to the cut outs for the MK3 exhaust shown here.

There should also be some closures that fit in the front wheel arches for the Mk3 too which are not shown in the photo, These are said to make the difference as they close off more fully and prevent the air inside the bonnet leaking via the wheel arches under the car where there's a lower air pressure as a result of the tray under the engine.

I've run my Mk3 round Castle Combe and it does seem to hold the track well keeping up with Alistair's Mk4 with the K series engine but there's a lot of additional tweaks to this car compared to my Maroon MK3 so I can't say how much is the undertary.

[ilmung]

yes , you both are right,I was wrong ...... it was together with the MKIII I bought , thanks for the reply !

[Hans Efde]

I have them now on my Convertible but can't tell the difference in driving. Biggest advantage is that it keeps the underside of the car clean. Especially the rear one. But I suppose the effect on the Coupe will be much bigger, it is a very aerodynamic car with the undertrays. Topspeed even with the standard engine is impressive although I never did the topspeed without the undertrays. I also once in my coupe had to get around an object on the highway at 130km/h. It was a split second move and I expected the car to break out and kill me. But no, the Midas didn't slip or spin, it was like it was glued to the road. Concerning the lack of weight of the car it was the most impressive experience I ever had with the Midas. I am sure the undertrays were part of the road sticky effect since they seem to generate about 60kg downforce. So to answer your question in normal driving circumstances you won't notice them except for perhaps better fuel economy, but in an emergency situation they can make the difference.

[Rich]

I found the car felt more stable at speed after the trays had been fitted.